Hardware Overview: Novation Circuit

Introduction

Often, when we think of the things that Max does best, we think about creating things on our laptops, maybe with hardware controllers and a hardware audio interface. Seldom do we think about working with a groovebox-like device – one with built-in synthesizers and sample players, a full-on sequencer and mixer/effects combo. Why would a Max user care about such a thing?

In the case of the Novation Circuit, part of the reason comes from the heart of Novation itself: a company that has a history of giving us ‘hackable hardware’. By building devices that include pervasive and well-documented external control, we have a situation where we can combine standalone hardware with ultra-deep control from within our Max-based laboratory. Let’s take a closer look.

What it is

If you haven’t run across the Circuit, it’s easy to explain: take two Novation Nova-class polysynths, add four voices of sample playback, a step sequencer with realtime pattern selection and a software mixer (with effects), and you have a modern variant of the sort of groovebox that has become ubiquitous in the music hardware industry. Next, add a few twists: optional battery power, a built-in speaker and clean web-based interface for sample updating and patch storage. The result is something that is definitely up-to-the-minute cool.

In some ways, this is a new class of gear; by being completely portable and not computer-tethered, it means that you have the electronic musician’s equivalent of a ukulele – a small, fun, but musically capable ‘folk’ instrument that goes where you need to go. And it has gone through several software revisions that have improved its capabilities, taking it from interesting to impressive.

Why it is cool for Max users

How is a self-described groovebox of interest to Max users? Novation’s devices, going back to the original Bass Station, have generally provided full MIDI control of parameters. This continues with the Circuit, which comes with a full-on MIDI implementation for altering the synth and drum settings.

And beyond a simple MIDI sheet, they’ve also provided (through a partnership with Isotonik) a Max- and Max for Live-based editor that gives you a leg up on doing your own preset hacking. We see this in action in a recent video by Circuit user John Keston, who cracked open the Max for Live device and added some randomization to give him the inspirational boost he was looking for!

There is also a cool WebMIDI application that allows you to replace the samples, and to store all the session information from within your web browser. I put a MIDI sniffer on my laptop, and sure enough – all that data is moved back and forth from the Circuit as MIDI, but in an as-yet undocumented way. I think the hardware hacking community has just been handed a new challenge!

I have a few wish list items (provide MIDI thru for connected controllers, allow for step gate times shorter than one step, and document the sample loading!), but none of them prevented me from using the sequencer to drive cool Max patches - and even my modular hardware. I also found this a more-than-capable sound module to be driven by my quirky Max and Max for Live sequencers. Given the fact that it can be battery-powered, I have now extended the capability of my sofa-based studio in a pretty interesting way.

Conclusion

As you can imagine, having a ton of data control over your working environment can also provide a lot of opportunity for creative tweaking. Whether just using the Web-based editor to load up a bunch of weird samples, or using a Max/MIDI connection to generate wild-and-crazy synth patches and sequences, the Circuit has turned out to be a wonderfully Max-hackable hardware device – and a bucket of fun!